Resolution Time

The New Year always brings a renewed sense of commitment, of plans, goals, changes.  As I ran New Year’s morning, I was reminded again of this very important ritual we all seem to do.  I ran a beautiful – albeit frigid – 12 mile run.  The sun was out, but there was no warmth to be had.

During my runs, I always note the oddball things I see along the road.  The ones that get me thinking are the random shoes.  How is it that there can be just ONE shoe on the road.  Are there that many people that don’t notice one barefoot?  Or do we have a huge majority of one-footed people out there?  How does this one shoe lay forgotten on the roadside? 

Anyway, that’s the one that always gives me greatest pause.  But this New Year’s Day run, I couldn’t help but notice all the half-full cigarette packs.  Seven, to be exact.  I know cigarettes are wicked expensive now, so throwing that pack carelessly – or carefully – on the side of the road was no small task.

I also know that anxiety filled last puff at midnight – hoping against hope the addiction fades as the sun rises.  It’s hard.  Really hard.   We tell ourselves, this is it.  No more.  Cold turkey.  And then we puff one more time.

Most resolutions are hard.  They are made with the idea that we will better ourselves, lose that weight, gain that promotion, heal our bodies, be a better person, friend, or employee. 

Yet, rather from coming from a place of hope, these resolutions are often borne from a place of frustration or desperation.  We say to ourselves:  This is my last attempt, and with this new year ringing in, I will be all I am supposed to be.  I will quit these cigarettes, lose the junkfood, calm the anger, be kinder, find a purpose……..

And then the sun rises.

As I ran by those 7 packs (which happens to be a new record of packs found on the side of the road for me), I silently prayed for these people – the owners of these packs.  I prayed for their resolve to continue as the year moves along, for the addiction to fade, for their spirits to grow. 

Adding on is always easier.  Really think about it:  I will add some exercise to my day, I will add some vegetables to my meals, I will add some kind words into my vocabulary.

It’s when we have to leave part of us abandoned on the sidewalk – and not look back - that the real work begins. 

Hope your New Year is everything you resolved it would be. 

I encourage you to pick up a copy of my book, 7 Days to a New You, which is currently out on Amazon.  Let this guide you through not only a food cleanse, but an emotional renewal.  The new year is a great time for cleanses and I hope you pick up a copy today!